Testing Spirit Roots

The Great Elder was accustomed to such scenes and said calmly, "6,673 people. This year's number is even a little higher than in previous years."

"But more people is good. The chances of finding Spirit Roots will be greater too. It is only these two days; we will simply have to work a little harder."

Testing children for Spirit Roots was a tedious task. In past years, four or five cultivators at the Ninth Layer of Qi Refining would test them together, and the work could be finished in about a day.

But with several Old Granduncles having died in battle, this year's Spirit-Testing Assembly rested entirely on Chen Nianzhi and the Great Elder, making the task especially exhausting.

At first, Chen Nianzhi had been full of excitement, hoping to find one or two seedlings blessed with immortal fate for the Lineage. But as time passed, he gradually went numb.

After testing more than a thousand people in succession, every one of them had turned out to be an ordinary mortal without a Spirit Root. His heart grew somewhat heavy.

Not until dusk did Chen Nianzhi touch a young child's arm and send spiritual power into the child's body, only to suddenly feel something stir.

"Hmm—"

Chen Nianzhi's eyes lit up, delight appearing on his face. He sent his spiritual power in once more, and sure enough, he vaguely sensed a faint spiritual force.

Seeing Chen Nianzhi's expression, the Great Elder hurried over. He grasped the child's hand and sent spiritual power into the child's tendons and veins. Only after a long while did he speak.

"What a pity. A Four Element Spiritual Root."

Hearing this, Chen Nianzhi once again sent spiritual power into the child's meridians. This time, he indeed sensed four indistinct kinds of spiritual affinity.

Among cultivators' Spirit Roots, a Four Element Spiritual Root was already a middling-to-low aptitude. Such a Spirit Root basically held little potential for cultivation, because cultivators with Four Element Spiritual Roots progressed slowly, and most would not necessarily reach the Late Stage of Qi Refining even after spending their entire lives cultivating.

Though the Spirit Root was rather poor, they had nevertheless found a child with a Spirit Root at last. It was a good beginning.

The Great Elder amiably had someone lead the child aside, then continued the testing.

Perhaps Chen Nianzhi truly had gotten things off to a good start, for the two of them went on to find another two children with Spirit Roots.

For that very reason, even by the end, the Great Elder wore a smile, clearly in a fine mood.

This round of Spirit Root testing lasted two days. In total, three children with Spirit Roots appeared. Aside from the first child's Four Element Spiritual Root, one of the other two had a Five Element Spiritual Root, which needed no further mention. Most importantly, one had a Three Element Spiritual Root.

This was already quite a good aptitude. The Chen Clan only produced one cultivator with a Three Element Spiritual Root every few years, and such cultivators generally had passable prospects.

So long as they cultivated diligently, even if they could not break through to the Ninth Layer of Qi Refining before sixty and become a Lineage elder, they would most likely reach the Ninth Layer around seventy and become one of the Lineage's senior elders, contributing their share of strength to the Lineage.

"What a pity there wasn't a Two Element Spiritual Root."

After the testing was complete, Chen Nianzhi let out a breath, then spoke with some regret.

"You brat."

The Great Elder could neither laugh nor cry. Finding three Spirit Roots in one round was already quite good; in most previous years, they could only find one or two.

As for Two Element Spiritual Roots, the Chen Clan produced one only once every twenty years or so. The most recent was Chen Qingyuan, who had entered the Azure Sun Sect.

Chen Qingxu shook his head. He glanced at Chen Nianzhi, then said with a smile.

"The testing here is finished."

"But there are still six towns that need someone to conduct the testing. I must remain in Peaceful Sun City and cannot get away, so this matter will have to be handled by you."

Chen Nianzhi nodded. "Alright, I'll set out shortly."

After several centuries of development, Peaceful Sun City's population had gradually reached saturation more than a hundred years ago.

Because of Peaceful Sun City's limitations, during the Chen Clan's peak eighty years ago, they had paid an enormous price to cultivate six Tier 1 Spirit Veins within several hundred li of Peaceful Sun County.

Relying on those six small Tier 1 Spirit Veins, the Chen Clan established six small towns—the present-day Peaceful Sun Six Towns.

Each of the six towns had Tier 1 High-grade formations and a Middle Stage of Qi Refining Chen Clan cultivator stationed there. They were sufficient to guard against demons and monsters below Foundation Establishment, serving as the Chen Clan's security barrier around Peaceful Sun City.

With these six towns taking root along the outskirts and blocking scattered demon beasts, the vast plains spanning several hundred li in Peaceful Sun County's interior had become fertile fields and a granary where the Chen Clan's descendants in Peaceful Sun County had cultivated in peace for many years.

"These hundreds of li of fertile land truly showed the foresight of our ancestors eighty years ago."

"What a pity..."

As Chen Nianzhi crossed this plain, he could not help sighing.

Had the Beast Turmoil sixty years ago not dealt the Chen Clan a devastating blow and damaged seventy to eighty percent of its strength, it would not be so stifled today.

In the Eastern Wilderness, where demon beasts roamed freely and the environment was harsh, such relatively safe fertile land was exceedingly rare.

If these hundreds of li of fertile land could be fully developed, they could absolutely support several million mortals in multiplying and thriving. The number of cultivators the Chen Clan gained each year would increase by more than tenfold.

Unfortunately, the Chen Clan lacked sufficient strength. If it truly allowed several million mortals to multiply, it would likely instead invite a catastrophe that would wipe it out.

The flesh, blood, and souls of several million mortals—those were treasures that even Tier 3 great demons and devils in the Purple Mansion realm coveted. A single blood sacrifice would be enough to refine a Tier 3 Demon Treasure of the Purple Mansion realm.

Such temptation was enough to make evil demons take risks and commit acts that would outrage Heaven and enrage mankind.

Thus, the Chen Immortal Clan had always kept population growth under tight control, avoiding the attention of great demons and devils.

Chen Nianzhi traveled swiftly. In just over an hour, he arrived at the first small town.

This town was closest to Peaceful Sun County. It was the most developed among the six towns, with more than fifteen thousand residents. More than seven hundred children alone were of the proper age.

Chen Nianzhi spent several hours testing all seven hundred-plus children. Regrettably, he found no Spirit Roots.

Without wasting any more time, he went on to the other towns in succession. In merely two days, he finished testing five towns, yet did not encounter a single Spirit Root.

"The last town lies ahead."

Chen Nianzhi looked at the map somewhat discouraged, holding little hope for the final town.

Peaceful Reach Town was farthest from Peaceful Sun City. As the first line of defense for Peaceful Sun Town, it had the harshest environment and often suffered attacks by demon beasts and venomous insects. Its population was therefore the smallest among the six towns.

The entire town had only three thousand people. Excluding the eight hundred Black-Armored Cavalry who resisted low-tier demon beasts, there were only a little over two thousand residents, among whom fewer than two hundred children were likely of the proper age.

"Something is wrong."

While still more than ten li from Peaceful Reach Town, Chen Nianzhi sensed that something was amiss.

To guard against attacks by low-tier demon beasts, Chen Clan rules stated that Black-Armored Cavalry should patrol within ten li of Peaceful Reach Town. Yet today, he could not see a single one.

What made him even more uneasy was the smell of blood drifting to him from far away.

"This is bad!"